Keeping It Weird in Austin, TX

I feel like I need to go ahead and give a disclaimer here, which is that I have been to Austin before, and I didn’t like it. Yes, the bats that fly out from under the bridge were incredibly cool, the restaurants are wonderful, and the shops and culture are unique. I guess I just had a bad experience the first time I went. I apologize to all of my friends and family in Austin for this unfortunate opinion of mine.

With that in mind, I WAS pleasantly surprised that my second visit to Austin was much better than the first. Although it’s still not my favorite place in the world (again, don’t be offended, Austin people), I was much more open to its possibilities this time around. Do I think that the rest of Texas should be a little more like Austin in some respects? Absolutely.

I went to Austin as part of a professional trip and so was only able to do a little exploring during the small amount of free time that I had. However, I tried to take advantage of it to the fullest! While I didn’t make it down to the river this trip (knowing that I had been down there on my last trip), I was able to explore some of the downtown area and eat at some great restaurants (including the crowning glory of my trip: Voodoo Donuts).

I ate an excellent lunch at the Iron Cactus (located at 6th and Trinity). The food disappeared too quickly for me to get a picture, but suffice to say, I would highly recommend the steak fajita tacos. Everything I ordered was excellent, delivered with great service, and was well-worth the value of what I paid.

I got to walk almost the full length of 6th Street during the daylight hours, so that was nice to see the beautiful architecture and interesting music venues without having to deal with all of the craziness one might normally find there.

I got to make a special trip to the Whole Foods. This was exciting to me because my town does not have a Whole Foods and so, like a very awkward tourist, every time I see one, I have to visit and buy something from the bakery. This Whole Foods was different because it had a parking deck and not a parking lot (again, I am easily amused). Interestingly, the flagship store for Whole Foods is located right here in Austin, Texas.

Even with the threat of rain, sitting out on the Whole Foods patio to enjoy my treat from the bakery was enjoyable. There was plenty of seating to accommodate the patrons who wanted to sit outside and eat (though I was one of the only ones brave enough to do so…everyone else stayed indoors).

After my delicious journey to Whole Foods, I got to visit the biggest independent bookstore in Texas, Book People, located just across the street from Whole Foods. This bookstore was excellent and reminded me a bit of a much smaller version of The Strand in NYC. I would highly recommend a visit for any book lovers who are visiting the downtown area.

For dinner, my group decided to eat at the Vince Young Steakhouse on San Jacinto Blvd. It was an excellent choice for us, and everyone enjoyed some delicious entrees.

This longhorn took up a big portion of the steakhouse’s entryway. It was certainly an interesting sight.

Yes, I am THAT person who goes to a steakhouse and eats seafood. But once I saw the description of the halibut on the menu, I couldn’t resist! It was delicious.

After dinner, it took little convincing on my part to get our group to head over to visit Voodoo Donuts, a donut place that I thought only existed in Portland, Oregon (apparently, they have expanded!). This, friends, was the highlight of my entire trip. I LOVED IT. No exaggeration.

Voodoo Donuts is funky, weird, and absolutely delicious. I loved the atmosphere and the fact that it was so off-the-wall. It is a perfect fit for Austin.

The spinning case of donuts…there were so many to choose from, and all of them were pretty unique. Sure, you had your general glazed donut or chocolate covered cake donut, but you could also get a maple donut with bacon on top or a donut covered with fruit loops. It was heaven! Vegans will be happy to know that there were plenty of vegan options as well, and all of them looked equally tasty.

My delicious sprinkle donut. It was like donut ambrosia in my mouth! It does not matter how old I get; sprinkle donuts are still my absolute favorite, and this one was excellent.

Dinner the following evening was at Carmelo’s, a delicious and accidental find of ours that has amazing and very authentic Italian food. We thoroughly enjoyed it!

The beautiful courtyard at Carmelo’s Restaurant. I wish we could have eaten outside in it, but it was way too hot! This would be a great date night place or a good restaurant for special occasions.

My trip to Austin was filled with a lot of delicious food (and, ahem, delicious donuts), but it was too short for me to get to explore much else. I would be lying if I said I didn’t want to go back and explore a little more, especially with such beautiful scenery, architecture, and, of course, food!

Until next time my fellow travelers (and donut lovers)!

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Exploring the North Georgia Mountains

I decided that I wanted to do something a little different this spring break…I love the beach, but I just didn’t want to do the beach thing this time. So, Mom and I decided to do some exploring and hiking in the north Georgia mountains, and boy, what a treat it was!

Mom planned everything, so I am grateful to her for that because my brain had basically shut down right before my spring break from everything going on this semester. Although we have lived in Georgia before (twice), I had never spent a lot of time in the northern part of the state, particularly where the Appalachian Mountains begin.

It was the perfect time to take a few days to explore.

Cloudland Canyon State Park

We began by driving to Cloudland Canyon State Park in northwest Georgia. This was a gorgeous state park that deserves every bit of its name because we really did feel a bit like we were up in the clouds.

A beautiful waterfall in the mountains. We couldn’t see it at first, so we had to hike down a bit and follow our ears.

The beautiful scenery on top of the mountain. The gorge is actually much deeper than this picture makes it look.

Gorgeous view!

An impressive rock formation that we rested under on the trail down to the streams and waterfall.

This scene was so beautiful and peaceful

This waterfall and the surrounding area was amazing and peaceful. We wanted to stay there all day!

We traveled down the interstate after a wonderful afternoon of hiking and exploring and stayed overnight off of the interstate.

The next morning, we got up and drove to Gibbs Gardens, which is located in basically the middle of nowhere (actually, Ball Ground, Georgia…but still, it was pretty remote). Despite the remote location, it was completely worth the drive!

Gibbs Gardens

Gibbs Gardens was an amazing botanical garden. Mr. Gibbs spent many, many years planning and creating the garden and making it a completely unique and interesting place. One of the biggest draws to the garden is all of the daffodils, which he apparently wanted to plant because his mother loved the poet Wordsworth’s poem about daffodils so much. Cue spontaneous readings of William Wordsworth’s “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.”

A gorgeous morning amongst the cherry blossoms

A mountain of daffodils

They planted daffodils in such a way that some were blooming while the others were dying off so that there are always rows of daffodils to enjoy

The colors we saw were absolutely gorgeous!

This little guy seemed to really enjoy hanging out with all of the garden visitors

The gorgeous view that the Gibbs family has each morning they wake up

This other kitty also enjoyed the visitors who were eating their lunches out on the patio area

The gorgeous Japanese garden. This is one of the biggest Japanese gardens I’ve ever seen.

Helen, Georgia

Helen is a great town that is a recreation of a German/Bavarian Alpine town. Everything is decorated, arranged, and looks very Bavarian, even buildings like the gas station, the Wendy’s or Taco Bell, and the hotels. It lies right on the Chattahoochee River and is a great place to spend a day during the “low” tourist season (or a few days, since there is a lot to do in the high season). There is plenty of shopping, lots of restaurants, and (during warmer months) lots of outdoor activities like tubing down the river. It is kind of a tourist trap, but an enjoyable one! We enjoyed being by the river, exploring the shops, and eating German food at a great restaurant called Bodensee Restaurant. The most interesting thing we ate there was Brie cheese with vegetables in a foil pocket. It sounds disgusting, but was delicious!

The view of the river from our hotel room

Part of the pretty downtown area

I could have stared at this gorgeous and peaceful river all day long

Hansel & Gretel Candy Kitchen, where we indulged in some delicious treats!

Even our hotel for the evening had the Bavarian style and look

After a nice afternoon and overnight stay in Helen, we hit the road again heading toward Brasstown Bald.

Brasstown Bald

This mountain is the highest point in Georgia. It was a real trial getting up to the top of this mountain. I have no idea how tour buses get up there (apparently they do pretty often). The road up was so windy and curvy, long, and a bit harrowing at times with no safety barrier to stop you and your vehicle from plunging to your collective deaths on the piney forest valley below if you made one accidental driving mistake. I know that sounds a bit dramatic, but it really was a bit of a nailbiter road. Still, it was completely worth it for the gorgeous view that we got to see.

The parking lot. The only bathrooms available on the mountain are the porta-potties here in the parking lot. You can walk up to the peak of the mountain, but it is very steep and hard on the heart and knees. You can ride the van up the rest of the way (driven by an experienced driver who will also tell you a lot of the history and interesting details about Brasstown Bald and the area) for a small fee, instead. The top of the mountain boasts an informative video and an interesting museum/exhibit about the mountain.

View from the top of the mountain

Gorgeous!

One interesting thing that we learned was that the “smoky” blue haze on the mountains is caused by the type of vegetation in the area coupled with the atmosphere. Mountains in the West like the Rocky Mountains do not have the same type of vegetation and that’s why they don’t have the smoky blue look.

One function of Brasstown Bald is the forestry and fire services. As you can see, you have a great view on top of the mountain to see fires in the forest, like we saw that day.

Beautiful lakes in the distant valley

It was freezing up on the mountain, but worth every moment to get to see such natural beauty!

On our drive west, we stopped at an unassuming restaurant on the highway called the Armadillo Grill. We highly recommend it! Though it sounds like a place to get a burger and fries, it was actually a restaurant with a Tex-Mex menu, which we enjoyed, of course.

The beautiful mountains and valley that we saw on a scenic overlook after lunch.

The Ocoee River

On our final leg of the journey, we followed the Ocoee River west. We stopped at part of the river where Olympians competed in whitewater rafting events during the 1996 Games. It was a really cool area, and we enjoyed exploring and getting to look at the beautiful water.

The wet season obviously hasn’t happened yet for this river rafting area of the Ocoee

Part of the hiking/biking path was flooded

Beautiful and peaceful

Until next time, my fellow travelers!

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The Happiest Place on the West Coast: Anaheim, CA

WOW! It has been a long time since I have gotten to blog some of our travels! While we have visited a number of places since last July, I was just really negligent in documenting them, but I’ll be trying to do a lot better this year about it.

B and I recently had the chance to fly to California and stay in Anaheim. I was attending a conference, while B was enjoying his spring break. I have been to Anaheim before, but this was B’s first time in California, so we were both very excited, though we did both dread the long plane ride. We got to stay at the very nice Anaheim Marriott hotel, just a little less than a mile from Disneyland. B got to visit Downtown Disney, California Adventure, and Disneyland, and he loved every minute of it all! Since I was working most of the time, I was not able to join him until a Friday evening…I got done with working a little early and bought a “twilight” discount ticket at the concierge desk of the hotel. Since Disneyland was going to be open until midnight that night, I was able to get a ticket for about $75, which I thought was a bargain for about 7 hours in the park (if I chose to stay that long). If you ever stay at a hotel near Disneyland or Disney World, see if your hotel offers this great deal (you get to enter the park after 4 p.m. and stay until closing). Our hotel also offered a $5 shuttle to the park, but I chose to just go ahead and walk.

The gorgeous palm trees that just scream “California!”

Fun at California Adventure

B was sad to leave; he loved this park!

Radiator Springs Racers…apparently the best ride ever, according to B

We love water rides!

B loved attending this activity and learning how to draw some of his favorite Disney characters

I think he did a good job!

Disneyland entrance

As stupid as it sounds, I actually got tears in my eyes when I saw the entrance to Disneyland; I haven’t seen it in about 25 years!

Sleeping Beauty’s Castle

Still one of my absolute favorite rides

I wish Disney World would add Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride!

It’s not a true Disney trip without a visit with Pooh Bear

The perfect treat for B! He loves Dole Whips

The Matterhorn! This wonderful sight was actually visible from our hotel! It is my mom’s favorite ride in the whole world, so I was really disappointed when I didn’t get a chance to ride it.

B and I waiting to ride Pirates of the Caribbean, which is much more fun (and scary) at Disneyland than it is at Disney World. Note B’s Hakuna Matata shirt…he fit right in with this very enthusiastic Disney crowd!

Part of the very fun light parade. This float from Monsters, Inc. was very cool.

The engineering on Mickey’s float was amazing!

For all of my die-hard Disney World friends, I hope that you are someday able to make the trip to visit the Disneyland parks in California! We had a blast!

Until next time, my fellow travelers (and Mickey lovers)!

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Getting Capitolized in Washington, D.C.

B and I recently had the opportunity to fly to Washington, D.C. to visit with my sister and her new husband. They have a wonderful (though dreadfully expensive) apartment in Arlington with a fantastic rooftop view of the city.

We began our trip by flying into D.C. in the morning, dropping our carry-on luggage off at my sister’s apartment, and taking the Metro into the city to go see the White House. If you plan on visiting the city and taking the Metro, put some money toward a SmartFare card, which is a sturdy card that you can reload to take trips on the Metro system. I liked paying a little extra for the sturdy card because it can’t be torn or messed up while in my pocket/purse.

After disembarking from the Metro, we headed straight for the White House to catch a glimpse of it.

Next was the National Museum of American History, which was a fascinating stop, especially if you happen to be a history buff! We  got to see some amazing exhibits that really made me proud to know that someone thankfully had the foresight to know to save these items for posterity. From historical flags to old pieces of furniture to generation one iPods and iPhones, it was fascinating to take a closer look at American culture.

One of the most interesting exhibits was the inaugural ball gowns of the first ladies. The gowns were beauty and so well-preserved. I thought Michelle Obama’s gown was stunning!

After leaving the American History museum, we headed next door to the National Museum of Natural History.

Several exhibits were under construction, but it was an enjoyable visit overall.

One of my favorite exhibits was the Gems and Minerals gallery. I love anything related to geology, so I was fascinated! We got to see some amazing gemstones, including the famous Hope Diamond.

After leaving the Natural History museum, we decided to grab a snack and walk down to visit some of the monuments. It was a warm day, but that didn’t stop everyone from enjoying the beauty of the monuments.

Washington Monument

Part of the beautiful World War II monument

 

The Lincoln Memorial

An amazing view from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial

It was also nice to just sit and observe the area, which is much more wooded and peaceful than I expected it to be.

After a very long (and hot!) day of walking, we made our way back to freshen up for dinner. On our brother-in-law’s recommendation, we all ate at the very delicious Farmers Fisher Bakers where we ate a very large, but great meal.

Our appetizer that was an interesting blend of bread and broth options for dipping

My crab cakes and sides…a little too salty for my taste. My kidneys ached after eating these!

Our medley of delicious desserts (below). The hummingbird cake (middle) was very good!

 

The beautiful Potomac River

A great view of the Kennedy Center

It was wonderful to take a nice stroll after dinner along the beautiful Potomac River and drink in the sights and sounds of this part of Washington.

The next day, we got an early start because we had so many things to go, do, and see!

We first went to the Supreme Court building. I actually had tears in my eyes because I thought it was so exciting to be there.

Interestingly, you cannot enter the building through those front steps. You need to go around to the side entrances to be able to go in.

The words at the top read “Equal Justice Under Law”

Inside the Supreme Court building waiting to go into the inner chambers for a lecture about the court.

The courtroom

Needless to say, I was thrilled to find myself in this building. The lecture we attended was very interesting. None of us knew, for instance, that a basketball court is actually one floor above the courtroom. We had fun deciding who it was that liked to play ball there. The courtroom itself was also a lot smaller and more intimate than I was expecting. I can’t imagine sitting in those uncomfortable seats for an entire day of court!

After we left the Supreme Court, we headed over to the beautiful Library of Congress.

Although I’ve been to the Library of Congress as a child, I did not remember the sheer magnificence of the architecture and decorations. It was certainly breathtaking. We ate in the “secret tunnel” under the Library at a Subway/Dunkin Donuts and made our way over to our Congressman’s office for a tour of the Capitol building.

We made arrangements through our Representative’s office to tour the Capitol. You can also make these reservations through your Senators’ offices, as well. It was a treat to get to walk past the offices of so many famous Representatives, and we greatly enjoyed our tour of the Capitol building, which was led by a young, but knowledgeable intern.

The Capitol building. The dome is currently being repaired.

After leaving the Capitol, we headed over to the Folger Shakespeare Library, a special treat for me, the Shakespeare buff and general Anglophile.

This wonderful place is home to the world’s largest Shakespeare collection and a wonderful theatre.

After I had my opportunity to view one of his folios, see the reading room, see the stage, and cry a little about how wonderful the work of Shakespeare is, we made our way back to get ready for dinner.

Our brother-in-law again suggested a delicious option for dinner, Fuego Cocina y Tequileria. It was a little more of a bar scene that what we would have preferred, but the food was excellent, and I would definitely go back!

My delicious dinner

The next morning, we visited the zoo, which was a great experience (and yet another free activity!).

Next, we made a final stop in the D.C. area before heading on to Leesburg, Virginia, to visit with our brother-in-law’s family and go to church with them the next day.

Politics & Prose, a wonderful (and very famous) independent bookstore, is one that B has been buying signed books from for years. For our trip, he had already called ahead and reserved several signed books that he wanted to pick up for his collection. I have to say, as well, that the travel section at the bookstore was absolutely amazing!

This bookstore seemed strangely placed in a generally residential area. I guess we have it built up in our minds so much that we imagined it being up on a hill surrounded by a moat, like some sort of stronghold for literature. On the other hand, maybe it was just me that imagined that. I’m sure B knew exactly where it was located and what it looked like.

We had a wonderful time in Washington, D.C. It was an excellent option for a fun trip on a budget, as all of our activities (excluding all of those signed books!) were actually free. D.C. has a really interesting feel to it that is quite unique from other cities (at least in our opinion), and it was a remarkable experience to be able to visit so many landmarks that are an integral part of our nation.

Finding Your Travel Holes

I think the majority of us fall into three general traveler categories:

The Frequent Flyers

Those who want to travel to their favorite locations over and over again because those locations are just awesome to these people and they don’t have a strong desire to venture anyplace new. I put frequent Disney World, mountain resort, and beach-goers into this general category.

The Wanderlusters

Those who tend to want to go to new locations only–places they’ve never been and have always wanted to go. These people are travel bucket list-checkers. They know the places they want to add to their travel repertoire and they don’t really like repeating the same place too often, like the Frequent Flyers do.

The Mix-It-Uppers

Those who are a mixture of both.  These people like to visit the favorite places (re: the beach), but also really have a desire to go someplace new and different.

I myself am sort of a mix-it-upper, with heavy emphasis on the wanderlust side of things.  I do like to re-visit my favorite places occasionally, but I feel strongly pulled to areas I haven’t had the opportunity to explore in depth yet.  Some people (like me, at least sometimes!) love traveling, but can’t always easily decide where they want to travel to.  They can’t figure out if they’d rather explore a city, a mountain range, a seashore, a national park, or the countryside.  There are just so many wonderful places to go, so how can we decide?

Travel Holes

Sometimes, it is a good idea to find your travel “holes,” as I like to call them, especially if you are having a difficult time deciding where to travel next.  For instance, my husband grew up not traveling a lot, but he loves to travel now.  By looking at where he’s already been and where he hasn’t been yet, it makes it a little easier for us to figure out where we would like to go, especially because he likes for us to explore places that are new to the both of us.  That, of course, does not preclude states that I’ve visited a long time ago and would like to go back to (like the New England area).

B’s State Chart

He’s already been thinking about where he would like to go next!

B has some travel holes in the Carolinas, New England, and the West and Midwest.  He has talked recently about wanting to spend some time out West, experiencing some of the National Parks and natural wonders that the western region holds.

My State Chart

There is an obvious area of the country that I need to set aside some time (and money) to explore!

Looking at a map like this helps us visualize where we might want to travel to next, particularly if our emphasis is on someplace new that we both want to go to and we are having trouble narrowing down where, exactly, we would like to visit.  We just identify those travel holes and work on a plan to “fill them in.” However, you may or may not want to “fill in” a map of the U.S. or world.  Your motivation may simply be that you want to go someplace interesting, experience a different culture, see some famous landmarks, etc.  There

You may realize that although you’ve technically “visited” a state by driving through it, you haven’t really gotten out and explored the way that you would like to (for me, a good example would be West Virginia). You may also find that you want to approach your travel holes on a much smaller scale.  You may have been to the western part of your state, but not the southern part.  Perhaps you’ve stuck primarily to your part of your city, but haven’t done much exploring of the other parts that might have some interesting things to visit or do (and-hey!-that’s a pretty cheap travel experience).

Regardless of which type of traveler you are, and regardless of how many places you’ve been, what remains clear is that it is a big world out there, just waiting to be explored by you!

Want to make your own United States or World chart? Visit the Interactive Visited States Map website!

 

Until next time, my fellow travelers!

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A Shout Out to My Fellow Restless Spirits

My husband told me the other day that I have a restless spirit.  It’s true; I confess it.  Bless him, he didn’t say it as an insult (or a compliment, I guess), but just as a statement of fact.  I’m thankful that he embraces me for what I am, restless and nomadic spirit and all.

I am a plan for the future type of lady.  I am a list person. I am a go-getter. I am a nomad (or, at least, I used to be, and still, in my brain, I am).   And so, understandably, it’s a little difficult for me to settle down sometimes.  It’s like I’ve got restless leg syndrome of the brain.  Some of that I can get out of my system when I travel somewhere new, even if it is a local or nearby location.

There are always things to do and see and experience and think about.  It’s completely not surprising to me that I am restless, given that my family and I moved all over the country, sometimes every six months, as I was growing up.  I learned to do and see and experience and think about things, and all of that just permanently stuck with me, even into adulthood.  It is not that I do not feel content or happy in my life.  It is just that I am so used to going and doing that it’s hard for me to turn that off that restless feeling.  It also gets a little awkward (for others–not myself!) when they ask me where I’m from or what my hometown is.

…And my usual explanation is that I have no hometown, so I’m not really from anywhere!

 

That nomadic spirit sort of morphs into wanderlust, since it’s not really feasible nor always desirable to literally live a nomadic lifestyle.  Wanderlust, or the strong and irresistible desire to travel and explore the world, seems to hit us restless spirits extra hard.

So, when I get a bad case of the restless wandering syndrome and we can’t just pick up and go travel someplace “big,” I ask B to take me somewhere for a day trip or someplace new in town so that I can get some of that out of my system.  I’ll read maps and look at pictures of places I’ve never been.  I coax my restless spirit down a little bit and let it know that SOON I’ll get to go to some of those places, or hop on an airplane, or take a road trip. And then I feel a little better.

For those of you out there who, like me, have a restless spirit, many happy wanderings to you!

Until next time, my fellow travelers (and restless spirits)!

Photo credit: ♣HelmutZen♣ / Foter / CC BY-NC-SA

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The West Side of Nashville, TN

For Independent Bookstore Day, B and I decided to travel to Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN, and explore the western side of Nashville for the day.

Parnassus had a line of visitors waiting to get in the store as soon as it opened, and all of us made a beeline for the unique gifts, prints, and books that Parnassus was selling as part of Independent Bookstore Day.  A busload of school children from North Carolina even stopped by as part of their field trip!

B picked up a unique print that he wanted (and immediately went to Hobby Lobby as soon as we got back to town to get it framed, and then immediately hung it on our wall as soon as we got home) and some other goodies that he wanted.  Although I love books, I was content just to observe the goings-on in the store and its patrons.  Parnassus Books is located across from Green Hills Mall on Hillsboro Pike. The store is co-owned by Ann Patchett, bestselling author, who, by my husband’s account, didn’t want to live in a town that didn’t have an independent bookstore.  Well said, and amen. It is a cozy little bookshop and a joy to visit.

B with his print and tote bag that he filled with some books and other treats.

After leaving Parnassus, we stopped by the Parthenon, located in Nashville’s Centennial Park.  The park happened to be hosting an enormous arts and crafts festival that day, so parking proved to be even more of a challenge than we had expected. I think we ended up parking on a grassy bank beside a tree (trees ended up being a sort of theme for us on this day).  The Parthenon is a replica of the actual Parthenon in Athens, Greece, and hosts an art museum inside (the inside was closed when we visited, but we got to walk around on the outside and admire the structure itself).

Some construction got in the way of an otherwise gorgeous shot.

Centennial Park was full of wildlife and lots of baby geese and ducks!

The “long” view of the Parthenon structure

This gives you a small idea of how tall those columns were

Lunch was at Chuy’s, which we were relieved provided us with complimentary valet parking. It was excellent Tex-Mex food with wonderful flavor.  You could tell that the ingredients were just about as fresh as they could be.  We will definitely be visiting again!

A delicious Tex-Mex masterpiece

After lunch, we drove further west to visit Cheekwood, a botanical garden and art museum on a historical estate.  The estate was very interesting to explore, and the Japanese garden, especially, was so tranquil and beautiful.

Part of the “color” garden, which was confusing to me, as the flowers were all only one color: purple.

This interesting sculpture was part of the “rugged” sculpture trail that circled the outside of the gardens.

B in front of another sculpture of a tree grove

Part of the “literary” garden, though we were flummoxed as to what, precisely, was literary about it.

A beautiful brook in front of the mansion and art museum

I found myself comparing Cheekwood to other botanical gardens, though, and was a little disappointed that it was not more handicapped-accessible and that it didn’t have more flowers and plants (which is what one would generally expect at a venue that bills itself as a “botanical garden”).  While we enjoyed our visit, it does not compare to the Huntsville Botanical Garden (Huntsville, AL), Callaway Gardens (Pine Mountain, GA), or Longwood Gardens (Kennett Square, PA).  Still, though, it was very nice to be outside, enjoying the gardens and the fresh air.

After a long, but relaxing day, we hopped in the car to head back home, glad that we had been able to get away for the day and explore a new area.

Until next time, my fellow travelers!

 

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Independent Bookstore Day 5.2.15

This coming Saturday, May 2, is Independent Bookstore Day. On this day, head to your local independent bookstore and take part in this wonderful day that celebrates independent bookstores.

If you, like my husband, deplore going into a “mega mart” to buy your books and prefer the more personal touch to your book buying, this day is for you.  If you are like me and don’t necessarily mind the “mega mart” bookstores, but do greatly appreciate the wonderful indie bookstore and everything it stands for, this day is also for you.

Don’t mistake Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million for indie bookstores.  They most definitely are not. An independent bookstore, for those that don’t know and are curious, is one that is independently owned and operated by an actual person, not a corporation.  Independent bookstores are integral parts of their communities and frequently host community events, local author signings, and other literary-minded gatherings. Think Shop Around the Corner v. Fox Books in the movie You’ve Got Mail. They are two very distinct entities.  There is even such a thing as bookstore tourism, where people go visit different independent bookstores around the country.  B and I definitely make sure to include the local independent bookstore in our travels, whenever possible.

Independent Bookstore Day is a great chance for you to check out your local independent bookstore, buy some amazing books and specialty items, and support independent bookselling and the local community!

To find the closest independent bookstore to you, check out this neat website: Indie Store Finder

Until next time, my fellow travelers (and indie bookstore-goers!)

 

 

Photo credit: Stewf / Foter / CC BY-NC-SA

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Greetings from Tuscaloosa, AL!

If you aren’t a football fan, or are not familiar with the sheer intensity with which Alabamians celebrate football season, then you might not initially understand why just talking about Tuscaloosa, Alabama, can elicit strong reactions from your listener.

When you are talking about an area of the country that counts down to the first game day of the season like children waiting for Santa Claus to arrive on Christmas Eve, you know that you’ve come to an interesting spot.

I had the opportunity to visit Tuscaloosa last week while presenting at a meeting, and was just so fascinated.  Tuscaloosa is a pretty town, easily accessible via I-20.  Many people outside of the area will remember that several years ago, it was struck by a horrible tornado that sadly took many lives and caused terrible destruction. It is amazing to me how resilient the people of the town were in overcoming such a tragedy.

Where to stay

University of Alabama fans will find it a pleasure to stay at the Hotel Capstone, located on campus.  I find the hotel overpriced, but I have some colleagues that won’t stay anywhere else.  For goodness’ sake, book early and make sure you aren’t there on a big game day (unless that is the whole point of your trip!).  For booking information: http://www.hotelcapstone.com/

I am normally a Hampton Inn sort of girl, but when I go to Tuscaloosa, I find the prices in the area to be a little exorbitant.  I discovered the Microtel Inn and Suites, took a chance on this unknown hotel (unknown to me), and now have a favorite place to stay in the area.  The hotel is clean, easily accessible from the main roads, and is a close drive to town, to the university, and to the stores.  The prices are infinitely more affordable than some of the other choices, and the AAA price makes that sweet deal even sweeter.  For booking information:  Microtel Inn and Suites Tuscaloosa

Where to eat

If you want a Tuscaloosa staple to try, head down to Mugshots, a grill & bar restaurant that has the best burgers and fries.  Try the house sauce with your fries and you might find yourself abandoning ketchup altogether.  Mugshots has a lot of specialty burgers that are fun to try, and the service is excellent.

The Cypress Inn is a local restaurant located on the banks of the Black Warrior River.  It was a pleasure to enjoy a leisurely dinner sitting by the window and watching the barges and boats travel up and down the river.  The food here is absolutely amazing.  I recommend an appetizer of the fried green tomatoes with feta cheese.  I ordered the scallops with smoked gouda grits and had to actually remind myself to slow down because it was just so outstanding!  Probably the best scallops I’ve had in a long time, and I definitely did not expect to find them in Tuscaloosa, AL.  Most of the people in my dinner party ordered either the Cheese Pie (similar to cheesecake) or Peanut Butter Pie for dessert, and they were a delectable end to our meal.

The Cheese Pie from The Cypress Inn

The University of Alabama has a wonderful conference center available on the premises.  As someone who has been to lots and lots of conferences centers, I definitely know what the priorities are, and UA accommodates those.  Plenty of bathrooms, people to help point you in the right direction, an abundance of coffee, soda (full sized cans available!), and ice, all just there for you to enjoy as you participate in your conference or meeting. If you get the chance to explore the campus a little bit, do so–it is gorgeous and well-maintained.  I did not get the chance to stop by the Paul W. Bryant Museum while I was on campus (located next to the conference center), but I hope to be able to go back for a visit.

Overall, it was a great trip and I definitely enjoyed my short time visiting Tuscaloosa and the University of Alabama!

Until next time, my fellow business travelers!

Photo credit: sunsurfr / Foter / CC BY-NC-SA

 

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When You Find a Hotel Deal, Grab It

B and I are planning a trip in a few months to visit my sister and her soon-to-be-husband in Washington, D. C., where they are going to be living after they get married.  I am ecstatic because I love my sister and will want to see her, but also because I haven’t been to D.C. since I was old enough to enjoy watching Barney & Friends on PBS.  The real reason we are going, however, is because we’ve got to get B on an airplane.

That’s right.

He’s never been on a plane.

So, before I drag him off on a 10-hour flight to the U.K., I want to give him a little “practice” on a much shorter flight to D.C. so he can get used to everything and how airports/airplanes work.  He’s an introvert and needs to work through things without being thrust into situations that he’s not expecting.

I digress.

In case you were not aware, Washington D. C. is an incredibly expensive city to stay in.  Lots of wonderful, free things to do, but you make up for those “savings” with your hotel price.  Trust me. So when I was doing a search for hotels in the area we wanted to stay in, I was SHOCKED when I saw an $89/night room right in the area we wanted to be at a VERY NICE hotel.  But, I didn’t book immediately because I still wasn’t sure of the dates we would be there.  MISTAKE!

The next time I looked, that hotel room was advertising for $189 for the exact same nights.

I was horrified!

I was mostly horrified at my stupidity, because I know better than to see a great deal and not immediately grab it.

When I looked back again in the next couple of days, the price was back down to $89, so I grabbed those nights and made our reservations (even though I still wasn’t sure about the dates).  B said that this whole experience would make a good blog post, so here I am writing about it, hoping to remind myself not to do that again, and to help others avoid it, too.

Some suggestions for finding a hotel:

1. Use AAA discounts — If you are not already a member, consider joining!  Just on the hotel discounts alone, it is worth the membership fee.  I actually think that our discounts have already paid for our membership fee for this year!
2. Use other discounts — Are you a member of a union? A state or federal employee?  A member of the military?  Milk those discounts; most hotels offer them to different groups!
3. Use hotel brand loyalty programs — Every time you stay at a different brand of hotel, join the loyalty rewards program. You’ll build up points each time you stay, and members of loyalty programs usually get other perks, as well.  When I’m looking for a hotel in a new city, I usually check with my favorite brands first.
4. Don’t hesitate — If you see a great deal for a room, go ahead and book it (if booking through the hotel’s website, not through websites like expedia.com and others).  Most hotels offer free cancellations up to a certain day (sometimes even the day of check in), so this is a great idea if you aren’t sure about your dates.  Just book a few different blocks of dates and cancel when you get closer to time and narrow down when you’ll be traveling.  Again, I prefer to book through the hotel websites directly because I can go through my loyalty programs and get easy cancellations, room or other special requests, etc.
5. Search different brands — Are you a loyal Marriott guest?  Maybe the Marriott (or its many affiliated brands) doesn’t have the best price.  Be willing to branch out and try some different hotels to see what you think AND to find the best deals.  I almost always save more money when I’m willing to look at different brands (and it’s helpful if I’m already signed up as a loyalty rewards member!  See #2 again!)

Until next time, my fellow travelers (and hotel deal-getters!)

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